Hi, I’m Judith Ashley, author of The Sacred Women’s Circle series, soul nourishing romantic women’s fiction with light paranormal elements. My stories show you what life could be like if you had a place like The Circle where you are unconditionally accepted, supported and loved. And where, with this support, you make choices to overcome the darkest nights of your life to choose love and light.
really is
the beginning of about 63 days of holidays.
This post will feature many “used to” topics.
For
example:
I used to
decorate for Halloween. I had a string or two of pumpkin lights for the
fireplace; we carved pumpkins and put them on the front porch with candles in
them; we also had a center piece of dried colorful corn cobs and other fall
decorations.
We also used to start the holiday baking about
this time if not a bit earlier. That included a plethora of pies (apple, mincemeat,
chocolate cream along with a purchased pumpkin pie from Costco and Marion berry
if my best friend would be celebrating with us.
Not to be
forgotten, I hung the American Flag on Veteran’s Day which falls between
Halloween and Thanksgiving.
Next up? Winter Solstice and Christmas. Fresh greens, lights, candles and my collection of trees when I decided not to purchase a live or cut tree any more. My tree collection had ceramic, stuffed, wooden, crystal trees in many different shapes and sizes. I also had a Santa collection of pillows that graced various chairs and couches at one point. My granddaughter’s lived with me from early days until grown. One of our traditions was driving around to see the holiday lights. We’d pick our favorites and talk about why we liked them over a cup of hot chocolate when we got home.
You might
be wondering what happened? Several
things.
#1 – both of
my parents had died by the holidays in 2002. The first Christmas in my life
that I hadn’t celebrated with them. I did miss one year because I was sick. My
Dad brought gifts to me along with food and he took my gifts back. That’s when
I began to scale back because now all the festivities were at my small house.
#2 – both of my granddaughters were grown and gone. My youngest granddaughter and my great granddaughter moved to Washington this time of year in 2016.
#3 – I got
older and the putting up and taking down of decorations for a couple of weeks
or even a month became challenging. Besides I have a string of holiday lights
up around my fireplace and along the front of the house all year long. Getting
an indoor and outdoor wreath was enough
for me. This year my granddaughter is staying with me while she finishes her AA
degree. If she wants to decorate, she can.
#4 – I do
not need to eat all the enticing foods that are readily available this time of
the year. I do not need the stress of decorating, cooking, entertaining, etc.
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One of my traditions is to celebrate in some small way a day for every year of my life. This year I go from 11/01/2023 to 01/17/2024. I’ve lived a Very Good Life.
Winter Solstice is my
special time. If I’m up to it, I build a fireplace fire and sit watching the
flames and reflecting on the year I’m finishing. In Pagan traditions, Samhain
aka Halloween is seen as the beginning of another turn of the wheel. I’ve
always seen Winter Solstice as that indicator…the turning toward the light.
If you are interested in the Pagan High Holy Days, they are featured in my Sacred Women’s Circle series. Lily: The Dragon and The Great Horned Owl is the first book in the series. In each book you’ll learn something about one or more of these sacred days. If you want to focus on Winter Solstice, Elizabeth: The Lady and The Sacred Grove (Book 2) and even Diana: The Queen of Swords and the Knight of Pentacles take place during this special time of the year.
Learn more about Judith's The Sacred Women’s
Circle series at JudithAshley.net
Check out Judith’s Windtree Press author page.
You can also find Judith
on FB!
© 2023 Judith Ashley
16 comments:
Great post, Judith. It's a good idea to create your own traditions.
Thanks for stopping by, Lynn. Creating those traditions was and is a process. For me the more challenging aspects have been to go with the flow or be in the moment. What fits for me and where I am in my life today is what matters. For a linear concrete person like me, that isn't always easy.
Happy Birthday, Judith - and enjoy your long, daily celebration. I remember how much you loved that birthday celebration at the shore with your friends. I, too, have cut way down on decorations. I usually drive the 1/2 hour to spend Thanksgiving and Christmas with my son and grandson. I used to go to their neighborhood and walk around on Halloween, but alas, my grandson is now 14 so no more walking around the neighborhood with cute little goblins and kitty cats, and.... And, these days, sometimes the celebrations don't even take place on the assigned day, as I adjust to family needs and available times. IN a way, it is freeing to do my own thing on my own schedule.
Happy Birthday, Judith and this post is wonderful for so many of us who have cut way back on holiday celebrations. My family always felt that Thanksgiving was the extended family celebration time and Christmas was the individual family celebration time. With a variety of spiritual believes across our extended family, it was a wise decision as each unit had different priorities during the winter holidays.
As we get older, it is imperative to determine what is most important. Where we want to spend our time, and what activities will bring us the most comfort and joy. I find more and more, that the most comfort and joy at holidays is being home in quietness and reflection. Though I do enjoy being with family, it is in doses of limited hours so I can return to the quietness at home and reflect on everything that happened.
Take care as we all bundle up for rain and cold this winter.
Great post, Judith. I love the way you celebrate your birthday. Such fun.
Thanks for sharing you are also scaling back. There's something about doing these things (decorating, etc.) when little kids are involved that don't reach the expenditure of energy needed when they are grown. I used to love seeing the little ones dressed up in their Halloween costumes. These days it seems there are more older kids out than little ones...although how would I know since I don't participate anymore.
Maggie, I also find quiet and reflection not only comforting but also important to my well-being. It seems as I grow older and the world around me is changing so rapidly, I am often a step out of cinq with others.
Dari, the way I celebrate my birthday is fun! And it is easy because I only have to designate something as a "gift" and it is. So when I was working long hours, my "gift" might have been taking a different way home or pausing along the side of the road for a few minutes to admire a view, the leaves on a tree turning colors or perhaps a decorate front door. The other benefit is none of these "gifts" need to be dusted, housed, etc. I appreciate that even more as I grow older.
Happy birthday month, Judith! I love the idea of celebrating a day for every year! As I've grown older and no longer have kids around all the time, I don't decorate as much as I used to. I do have fall decorations up that will stay that way until the day after Thanksgiving. Then my mother-in-law and I will take them down and put up Christmas decorations. She started this tradition with me about ten years ago when she stopped putting up Christmas decorations because she was always at our house or a grandchild's house for Christmas.
Have a wonderful holiday season!
I like your tradition of celabrating a day for each of your well lived years! Happy Birthday.
I still decorate as long as we have family Christmas celebration.
Happy birthday and I hear you. I still do a lot more than most but a lot less than I used to and less each year. Just don’t have all the energy or drive I used to when there were more people to enjoy it around.
Happy Birthday and Happy Holidays, Judith!!! I also have cut back on decorations as I grow older and my grand children have grown up. We live on an acreage and don't get trick-or-treaters. Most holiday gatherings happen elsewhere nowadays.
I enjoyed learning about the Pagan Holidays through reading your books.
Paty, I think this is the first year I don't even have a vase of fall flowers. I used to buy pots of mums for the front porch. They went up right after the pumpkins were taken down. I'm invited to spend time with family and friends each Thanksgiving and Christmas, however, I don't do well with lots of people...the noise and busyness is too much for me anymore.
Diana, I've always "heard" the joy in your posts about time with your family. I believe you find great joy and satisfaction in celebrating with your kids and extended family when that's possible. I actually can't see you not decorating for Christmas or any other time of the year. I believe we should all continue to do what brings us joy.
Annie, some of it is a matter of energy and drive for me also. And then I found out after my mom died and my granddaughters grew up and went on with their lives that it didn't bring me the level of personal joy and satisfaction that it had. So when energy is less, I focus on those things that do bring me personal joy and satisfaction. I am in awe of the pictures of the decorations you've posted. You are one very creative lady!
Thanks for sharing, Sarah. I'm delighted you've enjoyed learning about Pagan holidays through my books. And it does make a difference as we grow older and those young kids are grown. No longer would I see the same level of awe and wonder on their faces now. That was always a delight to me.
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